The San Francisco 49ers ride a two game win streak into their contest on Sunday against Washington. San Fransisco currently finds itself with a record of 6-4 and only one game out of a playoff spot. Washington comes into the game on the opposite side of the spectrum, having dropped their last two games and by virtue of their 3-7 record having no realistic shot of reaching the playoffs.
The 49ers have been surrounded by controversy throughout the season, from the suspension of Aldon Smith to the Ray McDonald situation, and most recently Ahmad Brooks "quitting" on the team last week against New York. Fortunately for San Francisco, the Washington team has had their own mess and the central figure is Robert Griffin III.
Three weeks ago Washington went into Dallas with Colt McCoy at quarterback and stunned the Cowboys who at that time were 6-1. Washington coach Jay Gruden was set to go with McCoy the following week in Minnesota until owner, Daniel Snyder intervened and pushed for RGIII to start. Washington promptly went out and lost to Minnesota and followed that up a week ago with a 20-point loss at home to a Tampa Bay team that had won only a single game to that point.
With that as a backdrop here are 5 burning questions to which the answers will be key to the outcome of the game.
1) Can the 49ers keep Robert Griffin III on the ropes? - Washington traded a number of picks to move up in the 2012 draft to select RGIII second overall. The move quickly paid dividends as he led Washington to the playoffs his rookie season.
That all began to fall apart when Griffin injured his knee in the playoff game. From that point on it has been a disaster. There was clear disagreement a season ago between ownership and the coaching staff on how to manage Griffin's return to the field. This was only amplified by poor play and Washington finishing the year with only three wins. A coaching change was made in the offseason but it has been much the same story this season under Jay Gruden.
Washington has gone 4-13 in Griffin's last 17 starts. It is up to the strength of the 49ers, their defense, to make sure that trend continues on Sunday.
2) Can the 49ers offense finally find some consistency? - The quarterback. The offensive line. The receivers. The coaches. It seems as though every week there is a different area of the 49ers offense that is struggling, and it's not always just week to week. It is often series to series or play to play.
The easiest way for the 49ers to find consistency on offense is to stop shooting themselves in the foot with negative plays, the penalties and dropped passes often kill drives. The 49ers need to fix this on Sunday as they get ready to head into a stretch run that will determine their season.
3) How can the 49ers fix their red zone woes? - The 49ers offense has managed to score a touchdown on only 39.39% of their red zone trips, their worst output since 2005. In previous seasons under Rombaugh the 49ers have been very run-centric in this area, but for much of 2014 they have attempted to be more balanced and use the quarterback on more runs. They need to slow that down and go back to what worked for them in 2012 and 2013 when they were well over 50%. Give the ball to Frank Gore, play action to the tight end and play to your strengths.
4) What role will Ahmad Brooks have on Sunday? - Brooks has been a starter at outside linebacker the last 58 games, but a week ago was limited to only 12 snaps against the Giants and a heated exchange between Brooks and defensive line coach Jim Tomsula. This week Jim Harbaugh stated that everything had been dealt with and that Brooks remains a key part of the 49ers future this season while also saying that defensive coordinator Vic Fangio would determine how much of a role Brooks would play. It will be interesting to see how this plays out on Sunday.
5) Is this a trap game for the 49ers? - The 49ers found themselves in a very similar situation only a few weeks ago when they hosted the St Louis Rams. Facing an opponent that was perceived as weak with a tough road game the following week in New Orleans the 49ers laid an egg and lost 13-10.
With Seattle coming into Santa Clara on Thursday this is the perfect time for a let down, something the 49ers can not allow to happen. The loss to St Louis was bad. A loss to Washington would be a disaster.
Prediction Time:
49ers 22 Washington 12
